Spoilers Supergirl - Season 1

[Christopher]

It's basically the same principle behind making, say, the Millennium Falcon look believable and like it has real weight as it flies around. Whether it's a physical or CG model, it still needs to move in a certain way for it to look credible on screen.

Which is a pretty bad example, I'm afraid, because the type of spaceship movement that most people find "credible" -- e.g. having to bank into a turn and always fly nose-forward -- is based on the movement of aircraft in atmosphere and is totally wrong for the realistic motion of spacecraft in vacuum. There is absolutely no reason for a spaceship to bank. All it needs to do is rotate around its center of mass and thrust in a new direction. There's no reason it can't flip around and fly backwards or sideways or belly-first. Only a few productions have ever tried to get this right -- Babylon 5 being the only one I can think off offhand. Star Wars, though, blatantly tries to emulate the look of aerial dogfights in old war movies. And Star Trek has had an unfortunate tendency to mimic the Star Wars paradigm of ship movement ever since ILM was hired to do The Wrath of Khan. (Although that was based more on Age of Sail broadsides and submarine combat than aerial dogfights.)

A lot of times, what the audience thinks is credible is just wrong. I remember reading this book about ILM and its techniques, in the chapter on miniature photography, they discussed how there was a mathematical formula they could use to compute just how much they had to slow down miniature footage to make objects appear to fall at the same rate they would if they were full-sized... but how they usually ended up making it faster or slower than that because the mathematically correct answer didn't "look right." And that's just for mimicking how things would move under ordinary, real-world circumstances. When it comes to things that people have no everyday experience with, intuition is all but guaranteed to be wrong.

 

[TREK_GOD_1]

The FX of the fight (especially the body slamming) were just plain awful.

It's. A. TV. Series! You realize they don't have a $75-million dollar effects budget and several months to a year and a staff of hundreds to put the scene together with for one episode, right?

The Walking Dead does not have a $75 million budget either (with a estimated per-episode budget of 2.8 million) employs a good amount of CG FX, and more often than not, they are effective, so your reply is not applicable to the SG situation.

Moreover, basic superhero FX in the CG / wirework era are now aged, and easy to accomplish, which is why some of the better online series (see: Superhero Power Beat Down)--certainly with no budget even approaching a weekly TV series--have superior FX work to Supergirl.

For a TV series with this level of effects, I think it looks pretty decent. And I know the last time I challenged you on this your brought up The Walking Dead, but that show doesn't have whole heck of a lot of computer-generated effects on an episode-to-episode basis, a lot of it is makeup.

Numerous walker herds numbered (seemingly) in the hundreds are not a ton of extras, nor many of the cityscapes, explosions, etc. Work is work, and how its executed is what's in question. Again, you can forget another TV series and see that link for an example of FX that are top level, and I doubt it has a WB budget for a network series.

 

[Joel_Kirk]

"Glee!", that's where I know Melissa Benoist. She played a less than major character who was added in the later seasons. I always thought she looked familiar but could never place her. My daughter mentioned it to me over the week-end. I imagine if SG stays on long enough, we'll eventually hear her sing. She's got a great voice.

She was also in "Whiplash" as 'the girlfriend'. And she was one of the reasons I wanted to see the film.

 

[gblews]

"Glee!", that's where I know Melissa Benoist. She played a less than major character who was added in the later seasons. I always thought she looked familiar but could never place her. My daughter mentioned it to me over the week-end. I imagine if SG stays on long enough, we'll eventually hear her sing. She's got a great voice.

She was also in "Whiplash" as 'the girlfriend'. And she was one of the reasons I wanted to see the film.

Damn, saw Whiplash and didn't even recognize her. If they ever want to do a musical, say around season 7, they have two great leads. The guy who plays Win has an incredible voice.

 

[tomalak301]

"Glee!", that's where I know Melissa Benoist. She played a less than major character who was added in the later seasons. I always thought she looked familiar but could never place her. My daughter mentioned it to me over the week-end. I imagine if SG stays on long enough, we'll eventually hear her sing. She's got a great voice.

She was also in "Whiplash" as 'the girlfriend'. And she was one of the reasons I wanted to see the film.

She was so underutilized in Glee. I did enjoy her perkiness though and I really liked her in Whiplash. She's the reason m loving Supergirl right now.

 

[Arrrrgggh]

Her smiles makes me feel funny in my tummy. The fact that her foster sister is the same woman who played the lead in Not Another Teen Movie (and in particularly the opening scene with her trying to... erm, have a little "me time") is something I have trouble getting out of my head every time she's on the screen. Especially given that she's the tough, serious one of the two.

 

[TREK_GOD_1]

Some have speculated that Henshaw could shape-shift himself to a Supergirl copy to convince Cat that SG and Kara are separate people. On that note, I wonder if tonight's episode will have SG save him (recall the cliffhanger), so he feels obligated to help her out of that situation.

It makes no sense for Henshaw--who seems to be protective of his team vs. the government (Lane) and public--to not do anything to keep SG as distant from scrutiny as possible. Similarly, Supergirl has nothing to gain by an opportunist like Cat knowing SG's true identity--her secret is overexposed enough.

 

[JD]

The FX of the fight (especially the body slamming) were just plain awful.

It's. A. TV. Series! You realize they don't have a $75-million dollar effects budget and several months to a year and a staff of hundreds to put the scene together with for one episode, right?

The Walking Dead does not have a $75 million budget either (with a estimated per-episode budget of 2.8 million) employs a good amount of CG FX, and more often than not, they are effective, so your reply is not applicable to the SG situation.

Moreover, basic superhero FX in the CG / wirework era are now aged, and easy to accomplish, which is why some of the better online series (see: Superhero Power Beat Down)--certainly with no budget even approaching a weekly TV series--have superior FX work to Supergirl.

For a TV series with this level of effects, I think it looks pretty decent. And I know the last time I challenged you on this your brought up The Walking Dead, but that show doesn't have whole heck of a lot of computer-generated effects on an episode-to-episode basis, a lot of it is makeup.

Numerous walker herds numbered (seemingly) in the hundreds are not a ton of extras, nor many of the cityscapes, explosions, etc. Work is work, and how its executed is what's in question. Again, you can forget another TV series and see that link for an example of FX that are top level, and I doubt it has a WB budget for a network series.

TWD also doesn't have those kinds of effects in every episode, while Supergirl does tend to have some fairly complex CG effects in almost every episode.

 

[TREK_GOD_1]

TWD also doesn't have those kinds of effects in every episode, while Supergirl does tend to have some fairly complex CG effects in almost every episode.

Again, I say look at Superhero Power Beat Down), which used complex sequences in many of their episodes, and come off in a realistic fashion Supergirl--a big studio series with an undeniably larger budget / resources--often fails to accomplish.

 

[EnderAKH]

TWD also doesn't have those kinds of effects in every episode, while Supergirl does tend to have some fairly complex CG effects in almost every episode.

Again, I say look at Superhero Power Beat Down), which used complex sequences in many of their episodes, and come off in a realistic fashion Supergirl--a big studio series with an undeniably larger budget / resources--often fails to accomplish.

Woah, that is not a fair comparison AT ALL. Superhero Beat Down has one resource that Supergirl will NEVER have: time. They have put out 18 episodes over 3 AND A HALF YEARS. They have anywhere from 1-3 months between episode releases if not more. Episodic television has about 2 weeks. Supergirl will have to do more episodes than SPD has put out in three and a half years in about 8 months.

EDITED TO ADD: Not to mention episode length. SBD is a 7-15 minute mini film which is partially the host talking head bumpers, while each episode of Supergirl is a full 42 minutes.

 

[davejames]

Some have speculated that Henshaw could shape-shift himself to a Supergirl copy to convince Cat that SG and Kara are separate people. On that note, I wonder if tonight's episode will have SG save him (recall the cliffhanger), so he feels obligated to help her out of that situation.

It makes no sense for Henshaw--who seems to be protective of his team vs. the government (Lane) and public--to not do anything to keep SG as distant from scrutiny as possible. Similarly, Supergirl has nothing to gain by an opportunist like Cat knowing SG's true identity--her secret is overexposed enough.

That could very well be their plan, but I have a hard time believing Cat would really be fooled for very long by that. She's already experienced a lot and seen people with some pretty crazy powers by this point, so the idea that there might be someone with the power to shapeshift and appear as Supergirl probably wouldn't surprise her too much.

And hell for all she knows, this might be some secret additional power Kara herself has.

 

[TREK_GOD_1]

Some have speculated that Henshaw could shape-shift himself to a Supergirl copy to convince Cat that SG and Kara are separate people. On that note, I wonder if tonight's episode will have SG save him (recall the cliffhanger), so he feels obligated to help her out of that situation.

It makes no sense for Henshaw--who seems to be protective of his team vs. the government (Lane) and public--to not do anything to keep SG as distant from scrutiny as possible. Similarly, Supergirl has nothing to gain by an opportunist like Cat knowing SG's true identity--her secret is overexposed enough.

That could very well be their plan, but I have a hard time believing Cat would really be fooled for very long by that. She's already experienced a lot and seen people with some pretty crazy powers by this point, so the idea that there might be someone with the power to shapeshift and appear as Supergirl probably wouldn't surprise her too much.

And hell for all she knows, this might be some secret additional power Kara herself has.

Cat is no detective--she's just intrusive and reaching with no evidence. The one thing she knows is that Supergirl is related to Superman, and its never been established that Superman ever had the ability to shape shift. With that, there would no reason to keep pressing some deception on Kara's part. After a while, it could become a Bewitched situation, where Gladys Kravitz thought something was always happening at the Stephens house, but never had proof.

 

[Guy Gardener]

Investigative journalist.

If Cat really did earn her stripes in the tabloids and celebrity pages at the Planet, then she knows how to dig through Tom Cruises garbage like everyone else on that skeevy edge of the profession...

Hey?

Above a certain level where you have to worry about your garbage ending up on TMZ, you'd think that there would not only be private collection agencies to make sure your garbage goes to a secret dump, but that someone is preparing and displaying fake garbage outside famous people's houses depending on what image they want to put forward to the press and public.

 

[Commander Richard]

Winter premiere...

Guess my dislike of Hank is over.

So, we're going that route with Cat are we? You guys predicted it. It'll be a bigger deal now when she really finds out.

Who was that at the end?

 

[TREK_GOD_1]

Investigative journalist.

If Cat really did earn her stripes in the tabloids and celebrity pages at the Planet, then she knows how to dig through Tom Cruises garbage like everyone else on that skeevy edge of the profession...

Hey?

Above a certain level where you have to worry about your garbage ending up on TMZ, you'd think that there would not only be private collection agencies to make sure your garbage goes to a secret dump, but that someone is preparing and displaying fake garbage outside famous people's houses depending on what image they want to put forward to the press and public.

Investigative does not mean the investigator is not blinded by their own need or agenda, and it does not make her a mind reader. She has no evidence, and as of tonight's episode, Hank--as predicted--shattered Cat's harassment.

Now that Supergirl knows Hank's true identity, I hope that means he does not make too many appearances as his true self. That should be saved for important occasions.

"Blood Bonds" was a fairly strong, arc building / introducing episode.

Despite General Lane (and the president) taking over the DEO, and Lane's theatrics, Supergirl--forgetting her aunt's lies/threat will give Lane--and Lord all the ammunition they need to launch a military and PR war against the aliens.

On that note, in seeing the final shot of the episode--it seems the drive of future scripts will mirror the Justice League Unlimited cartoon's Cadmus plot. I just hope they avoid the "impostor" gimmick, as I see SG's aunt using that to finally convince her niece that humans--ultimately--are the enemy, and cannot be trusted.

That doubt could come in the form of James and/or Winn thinking SG is responsible for the damage caused by Lord's impostor--possibly involving an attack on the DEO. Perhaps this impostor will manipulate and/or hurt one of her friends, thus sealing that doubt?

Will things sink so fast, Superman will be forced to pay a season-ending visit?

Now that Supergirl knows Hank's true identity, I hope that means he does not make too many appearances as his true self. That should be saved for important occasions--like the

One unfortunate moment: I know Berlanti loves the Donner films, but the Non/Krypton scene was trying too hard to channel Terence Stamp's performance as Zod during his trial. Stamp had both the sinister stare and outrage down to a science. Non...not so much.

 

[Christopher]

I'm a little disappointed that Cat was fooled so easily and predictably. Although the idea that she wouldn't let Kara work for her if she knew she were Supergirl would kind of put the kibosh on that.

Still, she has a point. I often wonder about all the people who go unsaved while Clark is hanging around at the Planet with Lois and Perry and the rest.

I also think Kara finding out about Hank/J'onn was handled a bit cursorily. If it wasn't going to be a big deal, why have him ask Alex to keep it secret from Kara in the first place?

And if Astra and Alura were the ones championing the cause of saving Krypton, where does Jor-El fit in? Is he still the one who first discovered the danger? And if the House of El knew about the impending destruction more than a year before the end, why weren't they able to build larger ships and evacuate more people? The key element of the origin story is that Jor-El only had time to build a baby-sized prototype before the end. (And, err, a dog-sized prototype as well in some versions.)

Who was that at the end?

I think it was a Supergirl lookalike, though I'm not good enough with faces to be certain. The hospital tag on her wrist said "brain trauma," suggesting she's a coma patient... so maybe the bit with the black eyes opening at the end was

Spoiler: a thing

the effect of Max Lord's mind control power which he hasn't used until now for some reason. Maybe he'll be dressing this coma patient up as Supergirl and puppeteering her through mind control.

Note that his secret lab also contained a hologram of Red Tornado's arm. Which is a neat trick, considering that it was never out of Alex's sight when she showed it to him.

And, of course, the lab is room 52. Why is DC so obsessed with that number? Sure, it started with the 52 miniseries, but what makes that miniseries so much more noteworthy than all the other special events in DC history?

 

[Icemizer]

52, because calling a room Infinite Crisis is silly.

I don't know if Max is using his mind powers on the girl in question the room. The black eyes seemed more a technology take over but we will see soon enough. I liked that Max kept the arm.

We need to see Johns fight at some point, that would be great as will some white Martians.

 

[nx1701g]

^ Supposedly we're getting them later this season.

 

[Greg Cox]

And, of course, the lab is room 52. Why is DC so obsessed with that number? Sure, it started with the 52 miniseries, but what makes that miniseries so much more noteworthy than all the other special events in DC history?

Because I wrote the novelization?

Seriously,I'm guessing the lookalike might end up becoming Bizarro Supergirl, although that's just speculation on my part.

 

[TREK_GOD_1]

I'm a little disappointed that Cat was fooled so easily and predictably.

Cat is just some human--if Kara and Supergirl show up in the same room, and Kryptonians are not known for shape-shifting or projecting clones, she would--and should be fooled. That's reality in front of her face, not someone playing a game over the phone, a hologram, etc, but flesh and blood.

I think it was a Supergirl lookalike, though I'm not good enough with faces to be certain. The hospital tag on her wrist said "brain trauma," suggesting she's a coma patient... so maybe the bit with the black eyes opening at the end was

Spoiler: a thing

the effect of Max Lord's mind control power which he hasn't used until now for some reason. Maybe he'll be dressing this coma patient up as Supergirl and puppeteering her through mind control.

...as I noted earlier, the plot seems to be going down the road taken by the JLA cartoon's Cadmus arc, and the clone--only this is tweaked to not be based on Kara's DNA.

And, of course, the lab is room 52. Why is DC so obsessed with that number? Sure, it started with the 52 miniseries, but what makes that miniseries so much more noteworthy than all the other special events in DC history?

Who knows? Maybe DC is trying to subconsciously feed the number to audiences in the hope they seek that disastrous period in DC publishing, and become interested in its equally disastrous legacy.